NY YANKEES: NEW YORK (AP) - Derek Jeter is saying goodbye. Masahiro Tanaka is saying hello.
Jacoby Ellsbury, Brian McCann and Carlos Beltran are new to the Bronx; David Robertson is new to the closer's role. And Alex Rodriguez is nowhere to be seen.
Mariano Rivera and Andy Pettitte have retired, and Robinson Cano has moved to Seattle.
After missing the playoffs for only the second time in 19 years, the New York Yankees will look a whole lot different. And for the first time since 1998, they don't have baseball's highest payroll.
''I think it is probably the biggest transition I've been through,'' manager Joe Girardi says.
For only the second time in team history and the first time since 1947, every position on opening day other than the mound will be manned by a different Yankees player on opening day than in New York's previous opener.
New York's forgettable 2013 season began with an 8-2 loss to Boston, with Kevin Youkilis at first, Cano at second, Eduardo Nunez at shortstop, Jayson Nix at third, Francisco Cervelli behind the plate, Vernon Wells in left, Brett Gardner in center and Ichiro Suzuki in right.
The only holdover for Tuesday's opener at Houston figures to be Gardner, who has shifted to left. The rest of the starting lineup figures to have McCann behind the plate, Mark Teixeira at first, Brian Roberts at second, Jeter at shortstop, Kelly Johnson at third, Ellsbury in center and Beltran in right.
CC Sabathia will be the constant on the mound. He's coming off the poorest of his 13 major league seasons at 14-13 with a 4.78 ERA.
''Nobody wants to go through that again,'' he says. ''It sticks with me a lot. Just being disappointed in not being able to help this team win. I feel like if I could have been a little better we might have made the playoffs. I blamed myself for a long time in the offseason and now I'm over it and ready to go this year.

KANSAS CITY: KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - James Shields thinks back to last year, thoughtfully piecing together what was missing from the Kansas City Royals as they made a late push for the postseason.
The pitching was strong. The offense was coming around. The defense was sublime.
He finally settled on experience.
''These guys that didn't realize or have never been to September, when you're fighting for a playoff spot, now you have that experience,'' Shields said. ''And I think that was one of the things we were lacking last season, the experience. You tend to put too much on your shoulders. And I think the second half we definitely relaxed and put all that aside and had fun and played the game the way we know how to play, and it showed.
''I think with the experience factor now,'' Shields concluded, ''we're ready to go.''
After finishing 86-76 a year ago, and contending into September for the first time in a decade, the Royals have their sets sight squarely on their first playoff appearance since 1985 this year.
Anything less would be a disappointment. Anything less would be a failure.
''Last year was a blast. When the end of the season came in Chicago, nobody wanted to leave,'' first baseman Eric Hosmer said. ''They knew how close we were. We were right there. And it left a good taste in everyone's mouth going into the offseason, knowing how good everyone can be.''
Indeed, the Royals return most of their key players from a year ago, signing left-hander Jason Vargas to replace their only significant loss, starting pitcher Ervin Santana. They also upgraded at their weakest spots, trading for Norichika Aoki to play right field and bat leadoff and signing Omar Infante to settle a second base position that has been a black hole for years.
All of which left the notoriously frugal franchise with a record-setting payroll.
Royals manager Ned Yost hopes all those moves will pay off for a rotation that was among the league's best last year, and an offense that was among the league's worst.
''It's going to be a lineup that has offensive sequence from one to nine. You're not going to have any dead spots,'' Yost said. ''You're not going to get something going and then bam, run into a wall and have to get going again. At least, I hope not. I don't think so.''
So with more experience and an upgraded lineup, Kansas City enters its season opener Sunday at Detroit with boundless enthusiasm.

The New York Yankees' struggle to find production from the middle of their lineup has resulted in a lengthy scoring rut.

They'll again search for a fix Monday night in Kansas City as they try to salvage a split in the series finale with the Royals.

After Sunday's 2-1 loss, the Yankees (31-31) have gone 10 games without scoring more than four runs.

Mix in some inconsistent pitching featuring a 7.18 bullpen ERA in that time, and it's no wonder why they've dropped seven of 10 and are in danger of dipping below .500 for the first time since being 5-6 on April 11.

"Somehow we've got to find a way to get it done," manager Joe Girardi said.

The only real production they're getting from the middle of the order has come from Jacoby Ellsbury, who is batting .385 during a 13-game hitting streak.

Carlos Beltran hit behind him in the cleanup spot Sunday and is 1 for 14 since returning from the disabled list.

Mark Teixeira, meanwhile, was held out of the starting lineup after his ailing right wrist felt sore from the previous night. Girardi expects Teixeira back in the lineup Monday, though after an unsuccessful pinch-hit appearance, the first baseman is batting .176 in his last 16 games.

Derek Jeter went 0 for 4 and is 3 for 26 in his last six games.

"When guys are scuffling it seems like they are scuffling in bunches. When you get hot it seems like a lot of guys are hot," Jeter said. "These are the times you've got to keep swinging."

Kansas City (31-32), meanwhile, can climb back to .500 for the first time since being 24-24 on May 24 as it turns to Jason Vargas.

Vargas (5-2, 3.28 ERA) threw a season-high 117 pitches and matched his longest outing of the year Wednesday against St. Louis, allowing two runs in eight innings in the Royals' 5-2, 11-inning loss.

He's 1-0 with a 1.77 ERA in his last three starts.

The left-hander has never beaten New York, going 0-4 with a 6.75 ERA in seven starts and one relief effort. Alfonso Soriano is 6 for 13 with a home run and three doubles in their matchup.

The Yankees counter with Vidal Nuno, who is winless in his last five starts after surrendering two runs and six hits in 4 2-3 innings of Wednesday's 7-4 loss to Oakland. Nuno (1-2, 5.33) didn't get stuck with the decision, but he was more concerned with a regression in efficiency after throwing 92 pitches.

"I had a lot of long ABs that drove my pitch count up," Nuno said. "My ball was kind of everywhere."

The left-hander will be making his 10th start since joining the rotation and had made it though at least six innings in his previous three. He's 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA as a starter, going 1-0 with a 1.96 ERA in three away from Yankee Stadium.

The second-year pitcher has never faced Kansas City.

Royals second baseman Omar Infante had been 0 for 19 prior to going 1 for 3 on Sunday. He's one of five Royals hitters - along with Nori Aoki, Eric Hosmer, Billy Butler and Salvador Perez - manager Ned Yost expects to pick it up in the summer months.

"I have faith in them as hitters," Yost told the team's official website. "They have track records. You know these guys are going to hit. They've done it before. They're just all of a sudden not going to stop hitting as a group."